Nukuu ya bei iko hapa.

A natural word-by-word breakdown is:

• nukuu = quotation, quote, or estimate
• ya = of
• bei = price
• iko = is located / is / exists for this noun class
• hapa = here

So the sentence is literally something like The price quotation is here.

ya links the two nouns and means of in this kind of phrase.

So:

• nukuu ya bei = quotation of price
• in smoother English: price quotation or price quote

This is a very common Swahili pattern:

• kitabu cha mwanafunzi = student’s book / book of the student
• mlango wa nyumba = door of the house
• nukuu ya bei = price quotation

The linking word changes depending on the noun class. Here it is ya because nukuu belongs to a noun class that takes ya.

This is a very common learner question.

In Swahili:

• ni is often used for identification or definition: X is Y
• iko is often used for location or presence: X is here/there/in a place

So:

• Nukuu ya bei ni hati muhimu = The price quotation is an important document
• Nukuu ya bei iko hapa = The price quotation is here

Because hapa is a location word (here), iko is the natural choice.

iko is a subject-marker-based form of -ko, which is used for location/existence.

You can think of it as meaning something like:

• it is here
• it exists
• it is located

In this sentence, nukuu belongs to the noun class that uses the subject marker i-, so:

• i-
  • -ko = iko

That is why you get iko hapa = it is here.

Nukuu is commonly treated as a noun in the N-class (often called class 9/10), where many nouns have the same form in singular and plural.

That means:

• singular: nukuu
• plural: often also nukuu

Agreement tells you the class more clearly than the noun shape does. In the singular here, the agreement is:

• nukuu ya bei iko hapa

For plural, speakers may also use class-10 agreement in context, though usage can vary depending on the exact sense and speaker. For a learner, the key point is:

• nukuu does not change shape much
• the agreement words help show how it behaves grammatically

Yes. Nukuu can also mean:

• quote in the sense of a cited passage
• excerpt
• quotation

So outside a business context, nukuu might mean a textual quotation. But in a sentence with bei (price), the meaning is clearly price quotation / price quote / estimate.

Context is what tells you which meaning is intended.

Swahili usually does not have separate words matching English a/an and the.

So nukuu ya bei can mean:

• a price quotation
• the price quotation

The exact meaning depends on context.

In this sentence, English might translate it as either:

• The price quote is here
• A price quote is here

If the speaker and listener already know which quotation they mean, English will usually use the.

Yes. The order here is very natural:

• Nukuu ya bei = the thing being talked about
• iko = the verb
• hapa = the location

So the structure is basically:

subject + verb + place

That is a normal Swahili pattern.

Yes, many learners notice both iko and ipo in similar sentences.

For many nouns in the N-class, both iko and ipo may be heard, depending on dialect, style, and how speakers analyze the noun class agreement. In standard learning materials, iko hapa is a very normal and safe form for this sentence.

So if you are learning from this example, iko hapa is the form to focus on.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• Nukuu ≈ noo-KOO-oo
• ya ≈ yah
• bei ≈ bay-ee or a smooth bei
• iko ≈ EE-koh
• hapa ≈ HAH-pah

A few helpful points:

• Swahili vowels are usually pure and clear.
• u sounds like oo
• e is usually like eh
• i is like ee
• Stress is often on the second-to-last syllable:
  • nu-KUU
  • BE-i
  • I-ko
  • HA-pa

You would change the location word:

• hapa = here
• huko = there (general)
• pale = there (over there, specific spot)

So you could say:

• Nukuu ya bei iko huko = The price quotation is there
• Nukuu ya bei iko pale = The price quotation is over there

The rest of the sentence stays the same.